The term avant-garde refers to people that are simply ahead of their time, who are innovative and are constantly pushing the boundaries of what is commonly accepted as a norm. There are several people in the fashion world that truly deserve the epithet avant-garde, one of whom is the French/Hungarian designer Steven Arpad. His shoe designs which date back to the 1930’s, are so creative and modern, as if there are made for today’s runways. Lyrical curlicues covering this pixie boot exemplify the calligraphic “trapunto” leather embossing technique invented by Arpad in teh 1930‘s. Steven Arpad’s “Rams horn” prototype heel, is a nod to classical Greek architecture. 1950’s – A cuff-like strap over the instep dominates the design of this suede slide. The giant stud-like decorations are repeated around the front of the sole, making it look like a tugboat. For sure it was way ahead of his time, and perhaps still ahead of ours, but nowadays shoe designs involve so many detail that we can find in Arpad’s work and that is simply amazing.
